


Quiet Quotidian

by Inthretis



Series: Santa Claus Weiss [2]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Santa Claus, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Gen, Soft Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:28:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27929044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inthretis/pseuds/Inthretis
Summary: A recursive fanfiction of Painting Penance by jupitermonkey4.Also it’s a cross between the Penanceverse and Weiss Christmas, because the soft apocalypse melancholy needs some Christmas cheer.
Series: Santa Claus Weiss [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2065023
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jupitermonkey4](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jupitermonkey4/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Painting Penance](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/722587) by jupitermonkey4. 



> Hello! This fanfic is a fan sequel/crossover with Jupitermonkey4's Painting Penance, and also a continuation of my own Christmas fic, Weiss Christmas. Long story short, I was tired of waiting for Jupe to write Painting Presents, the Christmas sequel to PP, so I decided to do it myself (Insert Thanos meme here).
> 
> I also decided to make it a grand showcase of all the worldbuilding in the entire Penanceverse, such as Old Order, and this was written with Jupe's own input into the world and some finer details. As such, everything about Quiet Quotidian is canon compliant to his stories, for now at least, depending on how Jupe writes things out, but fingers crossed.
> 
> This is chapter 1 of 2, since the total is going to be roughly 12,000 words, and this is meant to be a relatively light reading.
> 
> So yeah, hope you enjoy this as much as Jupe did, and as much as I had writing it. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Weiss Schnee, leader and mayor of Lastion, was buzzed. The buzzing in her ear from the cheap whiskey she had bought was all she could do to push back against the date. While in Lastion, it was a day for celebration, celebration of  _ her _ , she couldn’t stand it.

They cheered and thanked her every year for what she had done, once upon a time. Thanked her for feeding them. For giving them warm clothes. Clean water and the equipment to purify more. For the building materials to start off fresh. They called it a miracle, they thought her magic.

She was magic, once upon a time. She was once the second heir to a tradition that stretched back a millennium, gifted with an ability stemming from the God of Light himself. She once stood alongside her peers of the other great traditions and cautionary tales, the superstitions and holidays of ye old. Now, Weiss was the last. All that remains of a secret society that went out in a whimper, while the rest of the world went out with a bang.

Weiss took another gulp. When a certain taste hit her, she spat it out. She glared down at her bottle. Her secretary had put an egg in it. A feeble attempt at being festive.

He didn’t even do it correctly, it was just a raw egg scrambled in with her gin. Hamson Glint was young, boyish at age twenty, and was now, to her consternation, her secretary. As Lastion grew from a refugee camp to a settlement, then into a bustling town, it became apparent that the mayor could not do all of her own paperwork.

Hamson was young, he grew up in a world without huntsmen, without kingdoms, without robot armies nor magnanimous battles, no movies nor holograms. He grew up in a world without eggnog. Yes, he’d heard of it, but he’d never had it.

His children wouldn’t even know of the word, when the time came. Outside the window, Weiss could see a single bright light. Atop the singular conifer that grew in the town square, atop it was a snowflake that glowed, the single point of light in a town with little access to electricity. Christmas lights were no more, and neither was tinsel. Adorning the tree were old scarves, too tattered to provide warmth, below it were scraps of parchment, conveying the town’s wishes and thanks, to her, to each other, and to the gods.

She wasn’t thirsty anymore.

Weiss put the bottle down and just tried to sleep on her desk. Maybe she had enough alcohol in her to give her a dreamless sleep, one that wouldn’t be filled with faces she couldn’t remember outside of her nightmares. Her desk was warm. Made of a rich oak, it was one of the first pieces of carpentry built in Lastion itself and not salvaged from dangerous ruins. It was warm from her own body heat, the sharp edges worn away over the years. She’d slept on it before, and quite frequently as the town grew.

She curled up in her sweater, made from fleece grown in a far away settlement that Lastion traded with. As she kept still, her heat radiating out and into the fabric, she could feel herself drifting away.

Her eyes fluttered shut, and the buzzing in her ears grew dull and silent.

_ There. _

She jolted up. No.

No. It couldn’t be.

Her power was gone. Her semblance was gone. She gave it up to keep everyone safe. It couldn’t be back already.

It had only been—

How long had it been? Weiss had forgotten. Years now. Hamson was young back then, only a toddler, bundled up in sheets—

Weiss shut her eyes. She couldn’t do this. Not again. It was too painful. Her heart ached, a pain that she pushed away with work and drink.

How many had died? Her friends, family, peers, even her enemies? It was easier to count those who were alive. They didn’t talk, but as the mayor, she heard whispers, rumors and new legends, idle gossip about interesting folks. Jaune was alive, somewhere, Yang too, in Vacuo of all places, living through her own endless task. The world continued to spin, and spin it did, tearing everyone apart. They were all just remnants, dying embers of an old world, flung apart by the wind.

Why did alcohol make her a poet? And a publisher? She will never live down those sonnets and songs that have spread throughout the settlement.

She wanted to sleep. Sleep and miss all of Christmas. Wake up on the 26th, ready to brave the continuing winter.

Even the names of the seasons were painful.

What would her sister have done? Deliver gifts. What would her brother have done? Deliver gifts. What would Ruby have done? Deliver gifts. What would—

“Oh for crying out loud. I’ll do it,” Weiss grumbled as she massaged her temples, pushing back against the pounding headache she was starting to develop.

She stood up from her desk and held out her hand, "Sack."

An ethereal white sack appeared in her grip. Weiss felt the soft texture, the silky-yet-not-silk the fabric was made of. Uncuttable, indestructible, yet weightless and flowing.

"Suit. Hat," Red and white enveloped her, a warm red coat, matching trousers reaching down to her ankles, and black boots covered her feet. A red hat appeared on her head.

Weiss glanced at her wall mirror, where she practiced speeches and prepared for dignitaries, “Looking good,” she whispered, “Looking festive.”

Her mind began running with thoughts. She would have to find a rooftop.

—

It was cold outside, as expected for December in Lastion. A light snow was beginning, but no storm this week. There was naught any wind, and as such, the only sounds were her own.

Her boots crunched the light snow beneath as she climbed up the roof. She sighed. She was warm underneath her suit. She sat down. It had been a long time since she felt the thrum of power, the ringing bells in her soul. It was the same as before, as if it had never left.

But Remnant has changed. The cities and kingdoms were gone, new villages and settlements have sprung up. Things were so different, it would take a miracle to visit every—

No. It wouldn’t. She shivered. The list in her head, the one of every single child who believed, and every child who didn’t, as well as their families and the people around them, it was so short.

It wasn’t even divided by region, there was only one category: “Remnant”.

A mental count confirmed her suspicions. The number of households she would need to visit was not even a third that of Vale back before Beacon. Back then, her family split up the world’s gift deliveries by kingdom and territory, doling out a quarter each, and still having to rush a bit.

Now, now she could visit every single home in the world, all by herself, with time to spare.

She took a deep breath, “Let’s get this over with. Sleigh.”

A glowing snowflake appeared on the roof tiles below. The light of her symbol felt too bright for her eyes, so she glanced away and into the night sky. From the snowflake glyph, her sleigh grew. It was pure white and ethereal, giving off a glow that calmed her despite everything. Two white reindeer, ghosts that were never alive, were summoned as well, their reins leading to the sleigh.

She walked up to them, her loyal steeds she hadn’t seen in so many Christmases.

“Hey there,” she fondled the soft white fur of the left reindeer, “Sorry for not summoning you in so long.”

They neighed silently, yet pawed at the ground, anticipating flight. She gave a soft smile, “I will, I will. It’s just, I’m a bit out of practice.”

She climbed into the sleigh, and with her sack next to her, she gripped the reins. Another practiced breath, “Mush.”

The reindeer began trotting, pulling the sleigh along, as if they can sense Weiss’ hesitation. She frowned. The roof was too small, they were going to crash at this rate. She flicked the reins, shouting, “Faster, faster!”

They built up speed as they approached the edge of the roof. Another flick, forceful and yet determined. The reindeer leapt into the air. There was no crash, no failure. The sleigh was flying. They were off.

“Woohoo!” her lungs filled with the winter cold air, a wide grin settled on her face and she steered her steeds in the direction of Lastion’s closest neighbor.

—

Remnant had changed in the years Santa was gone. Weiss knew it, she had lived through the kingdoms’ fall, the final attack by all the world’s Grimm as Salem drew her last agonized breath. Only odd settlements and villages survived, and in each village were only a handful of children.

That first village took her twenty minutes, as she got hold of her bearings once again, but by the second, she was finishing in record time. From her sack, came the familiar boxes and wrapped gifts, tailored to the wishes of the good little children who believed.

She could sense them, those that didn’t, and to her surprise, they made up only a small fraction of the whole, almost the same as it was sixteen years ago, before the fall. Before she chose to use her powers and lost them, to save Lastion from starving to death.

So much death back then. So much blood and horror. Ruined cities and crashed airships, broken homes and destroyed robots, abandoned mines and bloody lifeless bodies. Red blood in the white snow, surrounded by the green trees of the forest. The first days after the end were the worst.

Eventually, after the shock was over, and mankind rebuilt, things stabilized. With so much of the Grimm dead, new fertile lands, never before farmed, became available. Surplus took years to achieve, and famine was always a possibility everywhere, but comfort in full bellies came back faster than anyone could have hoped. With so many gone, every last able hand was needed to toil, and every last person, able or not, was fed.

That was what Weiss knew, for none of the children had true wish for candies, grain, or water. They wanted toys, dolls, other odd gifts Weiss had only passing familiarities with. It was happier. It was better than Mantle was, in the days of old.

A deep breath. Weiss remembered her childhood, when her mother would show her and Winter how to deliver gifts. How she was careful and shyed them both away while delivering to Mantle. When Weiss was older, she mulled over the list of gifts for Mantle, and wondered what she could have done to help.

She nudged her father every year before she left for Beacon, just after New Year’s, but even the influence of the SDC had its limits. It was during that time that Weiss learned something she never told anyone, not even Ruby.

There was a workaround, something Weiss could do, a little pick-me-up that strained against her power’s restrictions, but didn’t remove them. So now, for every house she visited, for every child that believed, and every child that didn’t, she would leave them at the very least, with a singular Dust crystal.

It wasn’t much, in the old days it was worth less than a laborer’s day salary, but now, with the mines closed forever, they were worth so much more. Once, receiving a Dust crystal meant you were naughty. Now, it was a bonus with every present. Anything to help brace against the frozen temperatures of the north.

Within such a short time, she was almost done with all of Solitas. All that was left was this one village near the southern coast, one Weiss vaguely recalled being known for its hot springs. As she went house by house, she paused at a pair of names that popped up in her mind.

“Carrizal and Vermilion Winchester…”

She landed on the roof and made her way to the chimney. It was a modest house, single story, thatched roof, excellent architecture for something built post fall. She shivered, but not from cold, before sliding down the brick chimney, sack in tow. Still warm, and a soft glow came from the fire at the very bottom.

Peeking out from above the barely lit flames, Weiss could see a living room. It was rustic, wooden floors and handmade rugs thrown all around. Wool socks hung from the fireplace, where she saw them from behind, and a table was set out just for her.

She crept quietly, and stepped down onto the worn rug. She sighed when there was no creaking, but nevertheless carefully pulled the presents from her sack.

Under her breath, she whispered, “For Carrizal, a wooden rocking horse, for Vermilion, a set of coloring books, crayons, and glitter.”

There was not a tree in the house, so underneath the stockings would have to do. She placed them next to the fireplace, but then, ”Ah!”

Her bad luck hit again. Some of the glitter got on her and tickled her nose. She was out of practice.

“Ah-ah!” Weiss held her nose, tears welling up as she tried to hold on and let it abate.

“Ah…” she sighed in relief. The sensation was gone. Then her sack slipped from her hand and fell to the floor with a loud thud.

“Put your damn hands up and turn around. Slowly,” a man barked at her from behind. Weiss slowly raised her arms up. Drat. In all her years as Santa, this hadn't happened before. She really was out of practice.

“Ah well,” Weiss began to speak as non threateningly as she could, “This is going to be awkward.”

She carefully took a step. Then another. She turned around one-eighty degrees and looked at the man, both their faces illuminated by the dim glow of fire, “Hello Cardin.”

The man was slack jawed, most of it hidden beneath his bushy brown beard. His jaw then clenched, and he swallowed. Cardin looked her over, from her outfit, to the hat, to her face.

His dry mouth opened, “Weiss?”

She coughed, “I’m usually better at this. Well, I haven’t done this sort of thing in years.”

“Years. It’s been almost twenty years. And now you, you’re here,” he was trying to wrap his head around it.

“So uh, how do I explain this,” Weiss coughed a bit. A bit of glitter must have gotten into her throat.

“I think—are you, er, part of the Quotidian?” Cardin asked.

“TThat saves a lot of time,” Weiss said, “How did you hear of it? We’re, we’re all but gone now,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“I learned from Velvet. It was Easter, all those years ago, and well,” he scratched the back of his neck. He placed his weapon, a large hatchet, down next to the fireplace, “I didn’t think I knew more than one. There weren’t that many holidays to go around, and after everything…”

“No, there weren’t. But you knew three. Blake was, as well,” Weiss said.

“Ah. Is um, she doing okay?”

“She died, back then.”

“Oh. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry about Velvet.”

“Ah, yeah. Thank you. Did anyone else…?”

Weiss closed her eyes, “A lot of us died in that final battle. But, I know Yang and Jaune are alive, somewhere out there.”

And there was a chance she’d see them tonight.

“Oh, that’s good to hear. On my end, I met Ciel, that Atlas chick my team fought in the Vytal tournament. Besides her though,” he shook his head, “I worked as security for a while, around this region, for caravans and the like, before I met my wife and settled down here. I farm, and do some ranching. It’s different from hunting, but I like it.”

“That’s good to hear,” Weiss said.

“Thanks. Oh, where are my manners?” Cardin sheepishly grinned as he pulled a wooden stool out for Weiss, “Do you want some water? Or, actually, we have milk and cookies set out, my wife and daughter made them for Santa, er, you.”

“Just some milk,” Weiss smiled as she sat down, now next to Cardin who was also sitting in his own dining chair, “I’ve got a long journey ahead tonight, and I wasn’t expecting my Santa powers to be working this year.”

“I’ll bet. Even knowing Santa was real, I’ll admit, you were the last person I’d expect to be him,” he chuckled and he handed her a glass.

“It’s the family business. How are Carrizal and Vermilion?” Weiss smiled as she accepted the glass of milk.

“They’re great. Wonderful little tykes. That rocking horse is going to be great for Carry,” there was a twinkle in his eyes.

“Good to know I haven’t lost my touch,” Weiss took a sip.

“It is. Thank you for the presents. And it’s good to see you. It’s good to know others from Beacon are out there. I wondered, for the longest time,” Cardin sighed, “So, if you’re Santa tonight, what do you do the other 364 days of the year?”

“I’m leading a small settlement up in Solitas. You’ve probably never heard of it,” she shrugged.

“Well, there’s these new maps that came out a while ago, so try me.”

“Lastion. I helped found it.”

“Oh that place,” Cardin stroked his beard, “Some of my potato shipments get sent there, I think. That’s not surprising though, you, leading Lastion.”

“Oh? Why not?”

“Well it’s pretty important, ain’t it? It’s trading all over the world, even though it’s so far up north. A lot of the trade networks were established by your town, or solidified with merc support. It’s stable and getting big, which is better than any of the warlord territories in the east, or the tiny pockets out west. You're doing a bang up job, nothing less from our class’s top student,” he laughed.

“Oh, we didn’t even graduate, don’t put so much stock into it,” she said.

“Hey, you spent your whole life learning to run a business, making trade networks is a leap forward. Running a whole town is even better. Don’t be so down on yourself, you’ve done great.”

“Th-thanks,” Weiss rubbed her eyes. Her sleeve was wet now.

“Any time. It’s good seeing you. I know you’ve got stuff to do, and even more busy back home, but if you’re ever in the area, you’ve got a place to stay, alright? Same for Yang and Jaune too. If you ever see them again, tell ‘em I said hi.”

“Will do,” Weiss said, finishing up the last of the milk, “Thank you for the refreshment. I’ll be off.”

“Don’t be a stranger.”

“I-I won’t,” she said, as she climbed back up the chimney.

\---

Weiss flew south down to Sanus, stopping by village after village, going around the former Vale kingdom’s outlying territories. From the skies, she could sometimes make out Beacon tower off in the distance, at the edge of the horizon, the giant petrified Grimm still perched atop it.

Just talking with Cardin again was enough to make her yearn for the good old days, when all they had to worry about was grades and the occasional White Fang attack. When she was with all her friends, and everyone was alive.

An even older memory tugged at her, and she began humming an old song she wrote, “Baby! Stay awaaaay from my milk!” she sang out into the wind. 

It was the stupidest song, about the stupidest thing. Young teenage Weiss, hoping to grow as tall as her sister, complained about her brother stealing the milk she needed to grow up and drinking it for himself, in song form. She was so embarrassed by it, she asked the Achieve-men to sing it for her in her stead.

She hoped they wouldn’t agree. To her eternal dismay, they did. And now, if the occasional bursts of the song all over Lastion were any indication, it would be her eternal legacy.

As she drifted down to Angort, a village that was beginning to become a bustling town, she noticed a few names.

Arc.

She hoped she found Jaune. It would be nice, seeing two old friends in one night.

—

Autumn Arc, née Cinder Fall, fell asleep near her fireplace. It was just for some last minute decorations and preparations for the holidays, something she absolutely did not procrastinate on, no matter what Jaune said. She probably should have asked for help, seeing as she only had one arm, but even after everything, she still had her pride.

She had finished though. Yes, she did immediately drift off to sleep as she finished, but she finished. Sleeping in bed or sleeping on a chair next to the fire wasn’t too much different, although she preferred Jaune over the fire for warmth. Jaune cuddled better.

Because of that difference, Cinder shifted between sleep and half-awake more often than usual. And because of that, she was immediately awoken and acted when she heard the sound of someone entering through the chimney.

A red hat poked out, followed by a white haired woman. Her blue eyes glistened in the flickering light of the fire. Which made them perfect targets for Cinder’s attack.

“Gaah! My eyes!” the intruder fell out of the chimney, landed on the flaming logs, then harmlessly flopped onto Cinder’s new rug. The intruder pawed at her eyes, keeping quiet nonetheless, as though she was considerate for those sleeping one room over.

“What hell stuff did you throw into my eyes?” she hissed.

“Pocket sand and twenty year old glitter,” Cinder said, circling around the perpetrator, “Now intruder, what are you doing in my house?”

“I’m just— pleh!-spe!— delivering presents. I’m Santa Claus,” she spat out, her eyes still closed, “Gods, it’s going to take at least ten minutes for the eye cleaning power to take effect.”

“The what power?” Cinder frowned.

“The eye cleaning power. You know, the power all of us magical beings have. It’s what makes the eyes glow,” she said.

“What do you mean, ‘us magical beings’?” Cinder tensed.

“Well, I sense maiden energy in you. You’re a maiden. I can tell, I’ve met a few,” her eyes stung, even when closed.

“I… am a maiden, yes,” Cinder couldn’t put her finger on it, but the woman before her looked familiar, “And that does lend credence to you being Santa Claus, although I didn’t know you survived the fall.”

Santa smiled, eyes still closed, “I’m surprised too,” she tried to stand up, but once she got onto her feet, she started wobbling. Cinder grabbed her arms and led her to a chair.

“Well, since you are Santa, I suppose I should be treating you with hospitality to make up for the unneeded self defense,” Cinder pulled out a nearby plate, “I didn’t believe in you myself, but my husband and kids do. Here’s a plate of cookies.”

Santa reached out and grabbed the plate, “Thank you. That’s actually part of why I’m here. Your husband wouldn’t happen to be Jaune Arc, would he?”

Cinder tensed again. She could feel some maiden power leaking out through her eyes, “Yes. He’s my husband. My name is Autumn Arc.”

“Nice to meet you, Autumn. Now it may sound incredulous, but I actually knew Jaune, back before he moved out here.”

“Did you now?” Cinder raised an eyebrow, and also looked up and down this Santa character, sizing her up. What exactly was her relationship with Jaune?

“Oh, we went to Beacon Academy together, in Vale. We were huntsmen-in-training, same year, different teams, though our teams, what was the word, hung out together a lot,” she bit into the cookie, “Mmmm, this is good. Just like how Jaune made it back then.”

The connection was made. White hair, scar over her eye, the approximate height and voice. This was Weiss Schnee. Gods, didn’t Cinder stab her once?

“Oh did you? Funny that, he talks about it all the time,” Cinder tried not to say anything, “Would you like some milk? There’s some out for you already.”

“That would be lovely,” Weiss tried her hardest not to rub her eyes, “How is he?”

Cinder handed her the milk, and stayed quiet for a moment. Eventually, she answered, “Lovely. He’s lovely. He’s kind, caring, funny, and a wonderful father.”

“Ooh that’s right,” Weiss put the milk down and reached into her sack. She pulled out a small pile of gifts.

“Here you go. For your whole family. Jaune believed in Santa before, but for some reason there wasn’t a gift for him this year,” Weiss gave a cheeky smile, “Considering the gift I gave him once, I can see you’ve got it covered.”

Cinder narrowed her eyes, “Got what covered?”

“Oh you know, just talk between girls,” Weiss started giggling, “I dated him once, years and years ago, because he wanted one date with me as his Christmas wish. It’s hilarious in hindsight.”

“Ha ha,” Cinder parroted. She glared daggers at Weiss, her new (old?) rival, who remained blissfully unaware as her eyesight was still foggy.

“Well, we rekindled it a little bit a few years down the line, but I won’t kiss and tell. It’s in the past anyway. He must be so happy being with you to go without a Christmas wish.”

The fire in Cinder’s chest almost smothered completely at that. She couldn’t help but blush, “I suppose so.”

“You’re lucky you know,” Weiss said out of the blue, having downed all of the milk, “A happy domestic life, powers every day of the year with no rules restricting it, kids even. Let me tell you, you’re lucky. Be thankful for it, okay?”

Weiss took another cookie and bit into it, “Especially the maiden bit. You don’t know how lucky it is to have consistent powers all the time without having to conform to rules that leave people starving or in danger. You get to control what to do with your power. You have a choice in your fate.”

Cinder took in her words, “Even so, is it not reassuring to know you have a set role in life, a destiny planned out for you?”

“Ha!” Weiss snorted, “As if. The powers are restrictive, can't do anything self serving or wildly game changing. I always wanted more from the infinite sack of wonders, wanted to do something with it, something big and ambitious. Never could, or else I’d lose the power for years and years. Stupid rules made by the stupid god of light.”

“That does sound frustrating,” Cinder said.

“Not even the half of it. I always wanted to do more. Wanted to do more good beyond just handing out a few gifts every year, something that was already being taken care of by capitalism of all things. But I didn’t. Status quo, gotta keep it up, or else I lose my powers. Everyone in my family, all the time, Schnee semblance included,” Weiss sighed.

“I get what you’re saying. I shouldn’t take my powers for granted. They should be used to their fullest extent,” Cinder said wryly. She had used her powers to its fullest before, as Salem’s agent, as would-be warlord, and now here in Angort, growing crops.

But was there even more she could do?

“Even then, you have to learn what your balance is. Using your power for good, and using it for yourself. It’s difficult juggling between helping others and self care,” Weiss said, “I spend a lot of time working as mayor.”

“As in an actual mayor of a town, or is that the most humble title a warlord can have?” Cinder asked.

“An actual mayor. I helped found the settlement, and I gained the town’s trust with leadership, planning, good ideas, and granting infinite food and supplies for one Christmas,” Weiss replied.

Cinder frowned, “But you just said you couldn’t.”

“Yeah. For the longest time, I had to keep up the status quo, the old order, as it were. The institutions I lived in that granted me privilege and standing: kingdoms, huntsmen academies, business, the Quotidian, all of that. But when the fall happened, suddenly it was all gone. There was no more old order, it was only me left. I got to make the decisions, I could decide what was the new way of things,” a smile crept on her face, “For once, I used my power to make food, clothing, shelter, Dust, drinks, tools, everything we could think of to help the settlement.

“For two hours, I made as much stuff as we needed. No superficial toys or candy, not at the beginning. Christmas was good and all, but the children and adults were cold and starving. As the clock struck midnight, my powers blinked out of existence. So did my semblance. It was my semblance too, no one else in my family survived. The new order was here, and for it, I decided sixteen years ago exactly, to hell with privilege. Why should I have something when others can’t?”

“You had power,” Cinder said, matter-of-factly, “With power, you get what you want, that’s how the world always worked, before and after the fall.”

“And all I wanted was to help people,” Weiss said. She looked at Cinder, her own eyes lightly shimmering as the particles began to disintegrate, “Do you really believe in that, might makes right?”

“I did, once upon a time,” Cinder said as she stood up, dragging Weiss up too, “But I’ve done a lot of things, learned a lot of things, that challenged that view. Come on, let’s go outside. I’ve got to show you something.”

“Sure,” Weiss said as she was dragged out the front door and into the windy cold.

The outside of the house was a bit shabby. The paint was chipped and most of the wood worn, but it was rustic inside and out, well maintained, and most importantly, homely. Right in front was a shop space, selling wares ranging from maps and paintings to fresh produce and toys. But what drew Weiss in was the sign hanging in the front.

_ Painting Presents _ .

“I remember now,” Cinder said, “Jaune said the name was inspired in equal parts. First part by me, a painter, and the second part by a friend. He said that he always struggled with being kind, even though to me it looked like it was second nature to him. He said he used to be selfish and boneheaded, but after years of maturing, and a singular, incredible moment of generosity and sacrifice, did he learn to be selfless.

“He lives selflessly to this day, and when I met him, here in this town five years ago, he kept to it, living like it every day. And then, he taught me how to be selfless too.”

Weiss looked at her, but Cinder turned away. She kept talking, “I used to be a selfish person. In some ways, I still am. I’ve done terrible things, hurt a lot of people. Even tried my hands at being a warlord, once. I don’t think I was ever cruel, but there were many things I’ve done that I regret.”

She took a deep breath, “Jaune and I, we learned to let go. It was tiring, carrying our pasts on our backs. When we finally learned to throw it out, keep the happy and good bits for ourselves and learn to leave the rest behind, that was when we could start over again, come together and love each other, raise a family. Be free from our burdens.”

It spilled out of her, she couldn’t stop it. But now, she was done. And she felt even freer than before.

“I—thank you, for that, Autumn,” Weiss spoke over the rustling wind, “Thank you. It feels great to know how everything is, once you finally leave the old order,” Weiss smiled, beaming out as she looked at the sign, then at the sky, “I feel like I can finish everything I need to do, and walk into that new age with the rest of the world soon. It doesn’t seem so alien and distant anymore, if someone like you can do so too.”

Cinder smiled, “Merry Christmas, Weiss Schnee.”

“And a Happy New Year to you, Autumn Arc.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of 2.

Weiss had been thinking a lot about the old trade winds, ever since powered flight became a distant memory. Lastion needed to import most of its food from elsewhere, and land and sea travel was always perilous.

Not to mention! The winds blew across her face, whistling the night sky’s dreams to her. The senses were magnificent. Weiss wished she could share this experience with someone else.

Now that she had finished Vale, she headed to the east, onwards to Anima and the many petty warlords’ domains. Crossing the oceanic expanse between the two continents was always a rush. The sudden loss of land in sight, replaced by a vast black ocean that reflected the light of the moon and clouds, onwards and onwards for hundreds of miles. It wasn’t until the distant shore appeared in front of her that the feeling of breathlessness left.

Off she went, to what had to be the most majestic part of her annual journey.

And yet, something was off. As Sanus’ cliffs disappeared from her back view, she felt the list tickling the back of her mind. The closest children who believed to the east were much closer than expected. Weiss squinted as she glanced down at the ocean. No boats. No ships either.

Her left steed grunted. She took hold of her reins and calmed him down, “It’s okay. We’re just passing through… the…” she followed her reindeer’s line of sight towards…

“Impossible. That’s impossible,” Weiss whispered.

Far off before her sleigh, floating and creaking across the sky, was Atlas.

**~ATLAS~**

**The Derelict City**

It was unmistakable, even in the darkness. The moon shone down brightly this night, illuminating the dark ruins of the floating city. A massive unholy behemoth, the greatest monument to mankind's end. A graveyard in the skies.

Much of the eastern sections of the city were gone, broken off years ago during the fall. Weiss knew, since that was where Lastion scavenged the city’s ruins for scrap. They sometimes unearthed skeletons with their unseemly archaeology.

She didn’t want to return. She had already seen enough in Argus.

And yet, she knew, she could feel it, there were two children, two living children somewhere in the floating city.

_Soleil, Bleu. 2 — Nice. Soleil, Rouge. 4 — Nice._

The list wasn’t making sense. There couldn’t possibly be children that young up there. She tightened her grip on her reins. She had to go. She had to find those children, and if need be, save them.

She hoped she could get there in time.

Her sleigh crossed the night’s expanse, towards the dark island in the sky. She flew above ruined buildings, broken glass reflecting the moonlight. There were enormous craters where Dust silos exploded and toppled skyscrapers leaning on each other. Weiss heard no signs of life. Grimm moved, slowly among the streets, but they attacked no one. They sensed no one.

Atop the tallest tower, in the very center of the once great city, she landed her sleigh. Once inside, she saw the elevator shaft, empty. She jumped down it. An elevator was just a bigger chimney.

When she reached the bottom, she slid further down, into the very heart of the city. Then deeper, into the vault of the Winter Maiden. Weiss could feel it, the awesome power of the Relic of Creation, the power that kept Atlas floating.

She learned once, that if Atlas ever fell, the destructive force it would have when it impacted the ground would have been enough to wipe out mankind and most life on the planet. That was what Yang said, at least.

The empty metallic chamber wasn’t quiet, however. She could hear the thrumming of machinery and the beeping of electronics. Could the relic have kept this running all this time? Weiss looked at a console, displaying data collected from autonomous drones working, mining?

She focused herself and listened. In the far off distance, she could hear the clanking of pickaxes, echoing through vast tunnels that ran throughout the city. Weiss thought back to the ruined buildings outside, they were smaller than she remembered.

Then she felt it. A breeze, chilling her from behind. Weiss turned around to see a glowing green figure, bursting with energy. The relic’s own magic obscured the figure, no, the maiden.

“Penny.”

“Salutations, Friend Weiss. It is good to see you,” Penny smiled. She looked older, a face showing the signs of middle age, despite being completely artificial.

“You look older.”

“I’m glad you noticed!” Penny ran up to her and grabbed her hand, “I made it for myself after a frank conversation with Partner Ciel four years and fifty-six days ago,” and yet, she gave the same old smile Weiss was used to.

“It is so good to see you again, especially tonight! We were not expecting visitors, well I sort of did but that’s beside the point, and Ciel just came back from a scouting mission to Mistral, so we were just about ready to start our family dinner!” she pulled Weiss along, down a series of corridors until they were in what was once a meeting room.

On a large table, were plates and candles, embroidery and utensils, all perfectly aligned in old Atlesian fashion. There were four chairs set up, but there was ample room for at least four more. A hovering drone flew above it, holding a bottle of aged wine and pouring it into the single glass on the table. It then left the table and rounded a corner.

“Ciel should be here soon, she’s just got her hands full right now,” Penny pulled out a chair for Weiss and patted it, “Have a seat! I’ll grab her and the kids.”

Penny left in a dash, leaving Weiss alone, except for the lonely drone, which had reappeared with a plate of steaming chicken and a box of transistor chips. A few minutes passed after Weiss sat down, awkwardly waiting as the drone set up plates and a napkin for her.

Weiss heard whispers from around the corner, before Penny marched in, Ciel and two small robots in tow. No not robots. They had faces, hair, and could almost pass for human.

“Ciel, this is Weiss. Remember, from the Vytal festival? Kids, this is Aunt Weiss, she’s an old friend of momma.”

Ciel Soleil hadn’t changed much. Her hair was longer, but she kept the same beret, and wore blue traveler’s clothes one could find anywhere in Anima. Her face was rougher, but her severe expression remained the same.

The two robots also looked at her. They were about three feet tall, and had tan complexions. The taller one wore a red beret and had freckles, while the slightly shorter one had a blue bow as a necktie. Then, realization struck.

“Rouge and Bleu, I presume?”

Penny beamed at their names, “Incredible, to think your magic is still functioning after all this time. I expected it would have taken longer to return, if at all.”

“Well it’s working,” Weiss said dumbly.

Ciel made a coughing sound, “I believe it is time to start. Everyone, take your seat.”

Weiss sat down, and so did the Soleil family. Ciel and the two kids each clasped their hands together. Penny quietly looked at Weiss and smiled before closing her eyes, although she only folded her arms.

Ciel began speaking, “Oh bountiful Sun, bright and luminous Solaria, we thank you for this meal, and thank you for bringing us an old companion here to partake with us as well. May you ride forever more and gallop across the heavens. Fi-im.”

“Fi-im,” Bleu and Rouge recited.

Weiss blinked. Oh, she’s a Celestial worshipper. She didn’t expect them to survive, since all of them would have been in Atlas. She noticed Penny smiling at her.

Penny said, “Let’s begin, shall we? I know Weiss is busy, delivering presents and all, so we’ll just have her sample a bit,” she reached for the chicken and quickly and precisely cut it up into slices, giving Weiss two pieces while Ciel took the rest.

“Thank you for your hospitality,” Weiss said. She frowned, “Where did you get chicken from?”

Penny smiled, “Trade! While most of the Dust in the city was destroyed, I was able to dig up a few crates. It’s not enough to last, but we’ve got enough to get by until my ultimate plan is complete.”

“Ultimate plan?” Weiss raised an eyebrow.

“Here we go,” Ciel rolled her eyes, “It’s nothing so dramatic. Penny is just working on developing an alternative fuel source to replace Dust.”

“Heh heh, sauce,” Rouge giggled and poked Bleu, who blew a raspberry at him.

“Quiet down, you two. We have guests. Be respectful,” Ciel said sternly.

“Yes, mother,” they both recited.

“It’s okay kids, mother is just grumpy from exhaustion,” Penny chuckled, “Anyways Weiss, I had an epiphany one day, when I was surveying nearby villages. Dust production is kaput. None of the deep mines are operational, and all of the surface deposits have been removed already. Dust mining might never return, it’s just not economically feasible to redevelop the technology.”

“That makes sense,” Weiss nodded, “What about wood or other carbon based fuels? Can they ever fix the demand?”

“Not likely, we just don’t have enough either. What we do have in abundance is wind and sun,” Penny reached into her pocket and pulled out a rectangular piece of glass, “Up here in Atlas, we have all the raw materials and manufacturing equipment to make these. I call them Soleil catchers, and they do just that: collect energy from the sun. If I made one the width of this table, it can collect enough energy to power some small devices.”

Ciel just smiled as she ate her meal, occasionally wiping her kids’ faces as Penny spoke, “Enough of these can potentially power cities. I’ve already got some prototypes scattered throughout the city, powering their own production and the drones you see around, mining the ruins for scrap.”

Gears turned in Weiss’ head, “Can they be used to power old electronics, or vehicles even?”

“Once I start making adapters, yes they will! I plan on also making enough to create functioning power grids for heating and plumbing in villages too. Of course, I will need to get in the graces of a village to test them out though,” Penny said.

“Well, that sounds promising,” Weiss smirked, “And I happen to know the mayor of a settlement up in the north.”

“You do? What’s their name, I wish to contact them by letter as soon as possible!” Penny was trying very hard not to bounce.

“Well, I’ll have to talk to her and see if she’ll agree, but I think she’ll be very intrigued in this proposition,” Weiss smiled.

“Gasp!” Rouge said the word as he pointed at Weiss, “She’s the mayuh!”

Penny actually gasped, “Really?! You’ll take a look at my ideas?”

Weiss glanced at Ciel, who only nodded. She looked at Penny, “I’d love to.”

“Yes! Kids, I’ll see you two for bedtime in a bit. Ciel, love you. Let’s go!” she grabbed Weiss and pulled her to her workshop.

—

It wasn’t so much a workshop as it was an entire manufacturing center. They were in a large circular room, with workbenches, maps, graphs, and consoles taking up the entire wall. Every few feet closer to the center were drones, drone parts, Soleil catcher prototypes, and various tools strewn across the floor or on makeshift tables. In the very center of the room was the relic.

“The Relic of Creation has sped up my research and development almost threefold,” Penny said, “I would have been able to do it myself, but it was very useful in the early stages. It’s just here because it’s easier to guard it in the same room I spend half my time.”

“Protect it?” Weiss frowned.

“Until I can find a proper place to land the city, I have to make sure we don’t fall and cause a cataclysmic extinction event,” Penny smiled, “Since we’re slowly drifting with the trade winds, we get new glory seekers and adventurous archaeologists every few months. I have to scare them off before they get too close.”

Penny reached for a specific device, “Eventually I’ll be able to retire it, and then we can seal it away forever, an old forgotten relic of the past, just like the both of us.”

Weiss looked at the relic. Penny was right. The world didn’t really need her anymore. Even if she was fulfilling her duty as Santa, Remnant had done well enough without her yearly trips.

Penny handed her a large glass rectangle, as long as Weiss’ arm and wider than her chest, “Even these Soleil catchers will replace Dust soon. No more need to go into Grimm infested ruins or spelunking in abandoned mines. No more huntsmen or huntresses needed.”

“No need to visit the old kingdoms,” Weiss said, “No need for academies or robot armies.”

Penny nodded, “It’s a bright future, don’t you think?”

“I suppose I’ll have to take your word for it. You’ll be around, after all,” Weiss replied, “The face is cosmetic. I know you don’t actually age.”

“Even if I don’t age, I’m still mortal,” Penny said, “More so than you, right now.”

“What do you mean?”

“My soul is dying,” Penny said, her voice soft yet stern, “My soul came from my father, and even though I’ve made it my own, it still has human limitations. And even then,” Penny stretched her arms out, in a motion that was more human than anything Weiss had seen her do before.

“The procedure father did to create me was still a prototype. It was limited and flawed. Pioneering, yes, but flawed. I’ve got ten or so years before my soul dissipates and my body just falls apart,” Penny smiled, and Weiss could have sworn she saw the beginnings of tears, “Before I built my kids, I was able to figure out the problem in the creation process and prevent the decay before it occurs. If my father was alive, we might have been able to use the solution for me, but that ship’s sailed.”

“I’m sorry,” Weiss whispered.

“It’s alright. As an artificial intelligence, ten years is like a millennia for me. The fact that I lasted so long after the collapse of civilization and technology was a miracle in itself. My children are immortal, assuming they don’t get destroyed more than twice,” Penny made a sighing sound, “The only thing that I really need to focus on though, is finding a good maiden candidate. It’s why I started making children in the first place.”

“And here I thought you’d love to have a big family,” Weiss smirked.

“Dozens, but Ciel convinced me to go for quality over quantity. That was her way of putting her foot down and stopping at two. Well, they turned out to be boys, so we had to go to plan B,” Penny smiled, “She goes out there, looking for a suitable successor, one who wouldn’t abuse it and use it to make the world a better place.”

Weiss frowned, “They would have to be suitably young, if you have ten years left. Especially since new hosts have to be under the age of thirty. Which means you’re scouting children.”

Penny gave a wry expression, “Had it been fifteen years ago, we would have had the pick of the patch, as they used to say, with so many orphans around.”

“That sounds creepy, spying on children to see the best candidate to kidnap for your own nefarious designs,” Weiss chuckled.

Penny smiled, “Not that much creepier than a holiday figure that knows every detail of every child, then breaks into their houses at night.”

“It’s a family business. Blame my ancestor from forty-three generations ago,” Weiss waved off.

“I actually am curious as to how the living manifestations of holidays came to be, but it’s rather moot these days.”

Weiss sighed, “The holidays came first, although the powers came along very soon after. Besides that, my distant ancestors didn’t keep perfect records.”

“So Christmas can exist without Santa,” Ciel said, walking into the room, “Strange, since Easter and Hallow’s Eve died shortly after their heirs did.”

And so did the magic surrounding Fridays, Weiss thought, but didn’t say.

“I’ve heard of harvest festivals in Sanus, but they’ve had them for centuries without a corresponding manifestation appearing,” Penny said, “Maybe there’s a specific condition that has to be met first?”

Weiss shrugged, “If you figure it out, I’d like to know. Would be fun trivia at least,” she reached into her sack and pulled out two boxes. She handed them to Penny, “These are for Rouge and Bleu. I wish I could stay, but I have Mistral and Vacuo to get to.”

“Oh…” Penny sighed.

Ciel raised an eyebrow, “Perhaps next year, you can save Bleu and Rouge’s presents for last? We’d love to have you again for a night, then bring you back to the north the day after. We have the only working Bullheads in the world, after all.”

Weiss couldn’t help but smile, “I… I think I’d like that. Maybe. I’m actually busy the days after Christmas, so I don’t know. Maybe you four can visit Lastion?”

Penny and Ciel looked at each other. Penny said, “We’d love to, once the kids are a bit older.”

“That sounds grand,” Weiss smiled brighter, “Well, I have to be off.”

“I can give you a lift to the roof,” Penny said.

“Oh no, I can find my way back—“ Weiss tried to interject.

“Nonsense, you’re our guest. The least I can do is bring you to your vehicle,” Penny’s boots began glowing. Exhaust started seeping from beneath.

Weiss looked to Ciel for help, but alas, she had a hand over her mouth, clearly holding back laughter. Weiss was doomed.

Penny grabbed her arm and lifted off the ground, green flames and winter magic propelling them, “To the roof!”

“Ah!” Weiss could only scream.

—

“Take care,” Penny said. She gave Weiss a lazy salute. They both stood atop the highest tower in Atlas, the city that flies above the oceans.

“I will. I’m off to Mistral now, any tips?” Weiss asked, “I haven’t been there myself, and the news of warlords is slightly concerning.”

“It’s rough,” Penny said, “But it will get better. Once I seed the Soleil catchers in the area, I think the stalemates can be broken.”

“Optimistic to a fault, you are, Polendina,” Weiss smirked. She grabbed her reins, “Mush!”

“I learned from the best!” Penny shouted as the sleigh rose into the air.

“You sure did!” Weiss shouted back.

—

As Weiss continued east, she took note of the invisible borders between the two dozen petty warlords dividing up Anima. She didn’t bother with their names, since they kept changing, killed or deposed by some other warlord within a few short years, with a small handful assassinated or suddenly gone missing.

In the old days, Christmas was a temporal neutral zone, a time of rejoicing and merriment. Since the fall, it was hardly that. Weiss heard news of one of the southern warlords defeating and killing two of his early rivals on Christmas Eve a few years ago, and another warlord marching east to invade on Christmas day the year after.

But as luck would have it, Weiss found the night peaceful and silent. Looking out from her sleigh, she saw scant few lights and no signs of mass movement. Unlike back home in Lastion, peace was fragile, and the Christmas spirit hadn’t really returned to the people of Mistral.

To keep things simple, Weiss traveled from one town to the next, one warlord’s demesne to the next, minimizing border crossing, where nighttime security was at its highest. She remembered tales of present delivery during wartime, how her ancestors spread joy when the world needed it most.

The very few times a Schnee was captured by a foreign military or a domestic surveillance agency were quite troublesome, and trying to explain her own goals would have been difficult in any era. To save time, as she went east, she went south as well, crossing the southern ocean to Menagerie, where she gave out gifts to the couple Faunus settlements still existing on the island.

She sighed as she pushed away the lack of feeling on the island. She didn’t feel the presence of a Black Cat anywhere on the planet, even on Menagerie.

She crossed back north, reaching the eastern half of the continent as she flew through the region. Mistral and Anima were once one of the harder regions to deliver to, being so populous and spread out. But she had finished the entire area in due time, only one more place to visit in the entire continent.

It was a remote location on the farthest eastern tip of Anima, just a relatively short hop across the vast ocean to Vacuo. An empty grass plain stretched out until it touched the sea, and just off the coast of it all was a log cabin.

Looking at it, Weiss knew it was recently built, less than a year old at best. Before landing however, she realized something important. The two children inside, twins, had the same wish: they wanted to see their mother.

Weiss had seen such wishes before, she’d even delivered a few of them in her time. It wouldn’t even be inconvenient to deliver either, the mother was, according to her magic, in Vacuo.

No, what surprised Weiss was the mother’s name: Yang Xiao Long.

Weiss hadn’t seen her old teammate in a long time. It must have been even longer than since she’d last seen Jaune, and he had a whole new life now, with a wife and children. Then again, everyone seemed to be having children, even Penny. Although it was probably just sampling bias, as Weiss generally only visited households with children, save for a few adult believers scattered across the lands.

It was this musing and mind wandering that allowed Weiss to be shot down from the night sky. Luckily, in the nick of time, her reindeer rolled the sleigh to its side, allowing the summoned vehicle to take the shot rather than her head. As Weiss’ sleigh sputtered and she plummeted to the ground, she could only wonder how it took a thousand years for someone to finally shoot down Santa.

Well, she was thinking that while also frantically pulling on her reins to try and steer her sleigh for a good water landing. With incredible precision and skill she wouldn’t have the other 363 days of the year, Weiss did just that.

She unsummoned her reindeer just before impact, allowing the sleigh itself to take all of the force before unsummoning it too. She then made a line of glyphs to skate on, allowing her to slowly dwindle in momentum as she slid across the ocean. Weiss then started going faster, with new glyphs pushing her forward as she turned back towards the coast.

Just because someone shot her down did not mean she was going to give up! If anything, it only fueled her drive! Weiss Schnee was going to be the last Santa, but she damn well was not going to take that lying down! She was positively skiing across the water’s surface, a wake trailing behind her as wind whistled through her hair.

“Cane!” she shouted. A white stick appeared in her hands, red stripes flowing over it until it reached the pointed sharp tip. With the bend as her hilt, the giant candy cane was a powerful lance as she held it forwards.

She kept picking up speed, swerving left and right as she dodged more artillery coming at her, each explosion missing her by mere feet before submerging into the sea below.

“Ramp!” With a muster of her magic, she created a ramp of snow and ice in front of her. Her glyphs propelled her up it and into the air, flying high above the ocean, and eventually the coast. Weiss spotted the artillery’s origin and dove straight down at it.

With the speeding of crashing hail, Weiss forced her cane into the cannon aimed at her body. She twisted herself to land behind it before the lodged giant candy cane caused a catastrophic failure, and made the cannon explode.

Weiss barely landed on her feet before she had to block a kick with her bare hands. She winced before jumping back, barely seeing who hit her. A foot slammed into her right shoulder, throwing her to the ground.

“Agh,” she panted out, “You’re lucky I’m ten years out of practice and caught off guard.”

“Yeah real off guard you were, taking out my artillery cannon in less than two minutes,” the man in front of her drawled out.

“And you kicked me to the ground,” Weiss countered as she got to her feet.

“How did you find me?” the man asked. His voice was tense, concerned, almost fearful.

“You won’t believe me, but the magic of Christmas,” Weiss said, “I’m here to deliver presents to your kids. Well, on the way to pick up the gift, but _somebody_ shot down my sleigh.”

“You can’t seriously make me think you’re Santa Claus.”

“How else would I know that your kids’ names are Phoebe and Deimos,” Weiss slid back to avoid a strike, “And that their mother is Yang Xiao Long?”

“Yeah, well guess my name then,” the man went in for a jab before kneeing Weiss in the stomach.

Weiss wheezed before grabbing him by his neck and jumping over and onto his back, “Gray hair, gray clothes, a jerk all the way through to your back,” she smacked his head repeatedly, “And yet somehow had kids with Yang, you must therefore be Mercury Black.”

He fell to the ground, but not before rolling and pushing Weiss headfirst into the dirt, “And that never ending haughty look on your face means you’ve got to be Weiss Schnee. Long time no see.”

She spat out a dirt clod, “Well gee, Yang’s standards always did blow,” she pushed him off and grabbed him by the arm, dragging him down the slope to the sea, “Big old assassin with a cannon not able to beat little old me.”

Mercury grunted, “Yeah yeah we’re toe to toe,” his chest heaving as he struggled to get his back off the ground, before eventually giving up and stared at the stars, “But I have been up for forty hours, you Christmas poodle.”

Weiss sighed as she gazed up at the night sky as well, “I can’t think up a good rhyme for that. I don’t know, do the twins doodle?”

“Yeah, Deimos is a real artist. You know, I never really got macaroni art until last month? Like, it just clicked in my head when he showed his to me,” Mercury said.

“I wouldn’t know. Too busy,” Weiss said.

“With being Santa? Isn’t that one day of work a year?” Merc said.

“I have a day job too, you know,” Weiss said, “I run a settlement. You?”

“Oh I did some odd jobs here and there,” Mercury said, “I mostly delivered messages between warlords, made good money off it. It worked, for a while.”

Weiss snorted, “Let me guess, it stopped working when you betrayed them.”

“Hey. Don’t sell me short. It worked great while I was betraying them, I made so much Lien from it all. It stopped working when I got caught.”

“And how many times was that?”

“Only twice. Three of them were never proven. But even without hard compelling evidence, they still accuse me,” Mercury shook his head, “It’s a shame what our justice system has become.”

“Truly a shame,” Weiss said. Then, a shooting star quickly raced across the sky.

“Make a wish,” Merc said.

“No thanks,” Weiss said, “I grant them, not the other way around.”

“You don’t wish for anything? Not even like, a pizza or something?” Merc asked.

“Please, I am beyond pizzas. Also desire,” Weiss said, “Beyond helping others, that is.”

“Wow, that’s deep,” Merc said, “Also it must suck being you.”

“It does not suck.”

“Totally bet it does.”

“Does not.”

“Does too.”

“Does not.”

“Does too.”

“It doesn’t!” Weiss huffed, “I’m perfectly happy with where I am in life.”

“Then why were you alone on Christmas Eve?”

“I’m always alone on Christmas Eve.”

“That doesn’t help your case.”

“Yes it does! I’m Santa! Of course I have to deliver presents every year!” Weiss said, “I just got my powers back tonight, after a whole decade without it.”

“So you were alone on Christmas Eve even when you weren’t busy being Santa? Lame.”

“Well it’s better than hanging around the townsfolk, cheering me on for one good deed I pulled ten years ago. It’s suffocating.”

“Oh woe is me, Weiss Schnee, I get a parade every year,” Merc laughed, “You’ve somehow become even more entitled, which is honestly incredible.”

Weiss huffed and crossed her arms, “You just said it sucks being me.”

“That was before you mentioned the parades.”

“There are no parades! It’s just Christmas as usual, except they’re celebrating me along with the holiday,” Weiss said.

“Sounds awesome,” Mercury replied, “No one in Mistral really celebrates Christmas anymore, so it gets kind of boring this time of the year.”

“Military actions do not sound boring,” Weiss said.

“They don’t sound boring, but when you duck before any start, they aren’t as interesting,” Mercury just shrugged, “Besides, you get caught in one, it’s really easy to die in the chaos, and what can I say, I plan on being a responsible parent.”

“One that sticks around until your kids are fully grown?”

“And after. It’ll get boring without someone to talk to,” he said, “Speaking of, what exactly were you going to give them?”

“They want to see their mother,” Weiss sat up and clutched her legs, “I know where Yang is, but only in relation to delivering the gift. Either I bring them to her, or I get her to come over here.”

“I am not letting those two out of my sight,” he said.

“Then I suppose I’ll have to find Yang and bring her over here,” Weiss said, “Any reason she’s out in Vacuo and not with you and your kids?”

“Hell if I know,” Mercury said. He got onto his feet, “She gave birth to them, I thought we’d be swell, then one day she just up and left.”

“Hmm,” Weiss tapped her forearm, “This might be more difficult than I thought.”

“Ya don’t say,” he started walking back to his cabin, “Well, it’s nice seeing you. Only wake me up when you’ve got Yang.”

“Fine,” Weiss said, “Don’t try to shoot me down this time.”

“It’s not like I have two anti-aircraft weapons lying around.”

“Sure you do, you’re definitely prepared. How else did you betray five warlords and live?” Weiss smirked.

“Allegedly,” he shouted back as he opened his door. Weiss waved at him before she marched out into plains and summoned her sleigh once more.

—

Vacuo hadn’t changed much since before the fall. It was still a decentralized mess of a civilization, more a loose group of tribes than a kingdom. Shade fell, and so did Vacuo, the largest city, but many of the outer lying regions were still intact. In the old days, Vacuo took a bit longer to deliver than Vale because of the travel time between tribes, but now the tribes numbered so few, it was just the same as elsewhere. 

The far flung tribes were done in short work, just as it was in the old regions of Vale and the continents of Anima and Solitas. Now that Weiss had delivered presents to all the world’s children, save two, she was ready to talk to Yang for the first time in ages.

There were stories of an endless sandstorm in the depths of Vacuo’s desert, one that had raged for over a century. Within it lay the ruins of a once mighty civilization, and within the ruins were the keys to a vault. Within the vault was a treasure so vast and wonderful it could fund the greatest army in all of history, and once did. But whoever had their hands on the treasure was cursed with simply wanting more treasure, cursed to add piles of gold and gems to an unending collection. And when they finally died from selling their food and water for more gold for their pile, the treasure added would simply turn to sand and be taken in by the raging winds that fueled the endless sandstorm.

From firsthand experience, Weiss knew it all to be true, but it was not because of a curse. It was because of a Grimm that fueled greed, luring in treasure seekers from all over the world. Team RWBY, with the help of Oscar, Qrow, and Team JNR, were able to slay the sand lizard Grimm before it drove them mad.

And yet, the sandstorm continued to rage on, and now, years later, it was where Weiss would find Yang.

In the eye of the storm, a thirty thousand feet diameter circle of silence and cloudlessness, was a stone slab, thirty feet high and five hundred feet wide and long. It was buried in sand, and stood sunken as the last monument to a lost people defeated by the Grimm. Sitting on top at the center of the slab was a one-armed woman, eyes closed, sitting cross legged and facing the never ending storm. Despite the dry heat of the desert, the woman wore four layers of clothes: tan rags, a tan jacket, a white jacket, and a red cloak. Covering her face was a large red and white mask in the visage of a Grimm. In front of the woman, tied to her belt by a thick rope, was the Relic of Destruction, dimly glowing as it floated an inch off the ground.

As Weiss flew over the storm itself and into the eye, she slowly brought her sleigh down to land on a corner, facing in a way to allow lift off later. She stepped off her sleigh and slowly walked towards Yang. Her boots clacked against the stone, her heels digging into the untranslatable inscriptions that covered the slabs, which themselves were covered in a thin layer of sand.

She stood in front of Yang, who hadn’t moved an inch. They stayed silent, the only sounds being the distant whirling winds. A few minutes passed before Weiss spoke, “I’m here to bring you to your family for Christmas.”

Yang said nothing. She shook her head, ever so slightly, back and forth.

“Not even a hello, huh?” Weiss gave a soft smile, which went away when Yang lifted up her head, revealing the black scar across her throat. Weiss scowled, “Who did this?”

Yang pressed her finger into the small pile of sand before her, and drew out the word, “dead”.

Weiss just looked at her old friend. She said, “Your kids miss you, you know? Out of everything in the whole world, all they want is to meet you,” she sat down in front of Yang and crossed her legs, “And I’ve talked to Mercury too. He’s doing good, so it might be good for you.”

A moment passed before Yang pointed at the relic, then back at herself. Weiss replied, “I can hold onto it. If I put it in the sack, only a Santa or elf can get to it.”

Yang wrote on the ground, “Light Magic interferes.”

“Then I’ll hold onto it by hand, and you can meet with them, then come back here. How about it?”

Yang shook her head.

Weiss frowned, “It’s not because of the relic, is it?”

Yang didn’t move. Her white mask stared back at Weiss. Weiss sighed, “I’d fight you for this, drag you kicking and screaming into my sleigh, but I am exhausted after fighting Mercury and his actual cannon.”

She still did not move. Weiss frowned, “I finished everyone else, you’re the last present I have to deliver.”

No response.

“Fine then. How are you doing, Yang? I haven’t seen you in years. Have you been here this whole time?”

Yang shook her head.

“It must have been hard, finding the relic and keeping it safe. And fighting off the Grimm that keep getting attracted to it,” Weiss said, “That’s why you’re in the sandstorm, it’s difficult even for the Grimm to get in. I get it, really.”

Still no words.

“But it’s pointless. We’re at the end of the line, Yang. You, me, Jaune, Cardin, even Penny. We’re done,” Weiss couldn’t stop, “We fought the war, just like our parents, our grandparents, and every ancestor for fifty generations. We are the generation that ended it. It’s over. The world ended with us, and we’re still here, clinging to something that died before we did.

“The war’s over. The kingdoms are gone, and we can finally move on. We’re all going to die one day, and the kids are going to be our only memory, the only ones who will remember us once we’re gone, and you, you have a choice, a chance at happiness, to not be alone, and you’re just going to sit here, in a godsforsaken desert until you die?”

Weiss screamed as she scratched at her hat, “What happens after that? You got any plans for that relic after, or are you just going to wing it like you always do? At least Ozpin had a vault.”

Yang didn’t respond.

“What about Ruby? Is this what she would have wanted? Because we both know she would have wanted you to be happy. ‘And they all lived happily ever after.’ That’s how all her favorite fairy tales ended. Well, everyone else is dead, and it’s just you and me who aren’t leaving happily.”

Yang tilted her head ever so slightly.

“Yeah I’m like you. I don’t have a family, not since they all died and our team split apart. I’ve got my community, so I’m not always alone, but it’s not the same. But you, you do have a family, out there, waiting for you,” Weiss held out her hand, “Come with me.”

Yang looked down at the outstretched hand.

Weiss gave a small smile, “Please. For me? For your children? For… for yourself?”

Yang pointed at the relic, then turned around, facing away from Weiss, the red cloak fluttering in the breeze.

“I see. That’s how it is then,” Weiss rubbed her eyes, “This is how you want to leave things.”

Nothing.

“The mask looks good on you,” Weiss turned around and began walking back to her sleigh, “I’ll try again next year. Merry Christmas.”

Weiss didn’t look back. She couldn’t.

——

She flew back across the ocean to the eastern tip of Anima, where Mercury’s house stood. Weiss blinked back tears the entire time. If she couldn’t bring them their mother, she could tell them something. A story about her mother, about their lost aunt, about what might have been.

Weiss would leave them with hope. A fairy tale, with a happy ending in the ever distant horizon, to be continued one day. It was the least she could do.

What might have been was not the same as what was.

As she approached the coast, she saw a pillar of black smoke stretching out into the sky as the smallest inkling of orange and red began to peek over the horizon.

“No,” Weiss muttered. She flew faster, until she saw it.

The house, the new house that Mercury must have built for himself and his kids, was gone, burned down to the ground, as was everything surrounding it. Charred and bloody bodies littered the scene, all wearing makeshift armor and wielding broken spears and swords.

She landed and ran out into the smoldering rubble, desperate to find signs of life.

There was none.

She took deep gasps and coughed out some sobs, as the blackened burnt crisps filled her vision. It was just like Argus. She kept wheezing and gasping for air as she stumbled across the fields. Her face was wet, and she could barely see through her eyes.

Weiss collapsed by the broken cannon from earlier. She shuddered as she prayed. It took her awhile to calm down, and allowed her to assess things ever so slightly.

There were no smaller bodies. All of them wore armor. Mercury didn’t wear armor. They were alive.

Weiss took a deep breath and focused on her power. _Phoebe and Deimos_. They were still on the list. 

They were still alive! They—Their wish had changed.

_Leave us alone. Please don’t let anyone find us._

“Granted,” Weiss whispered. She knew now with certainty that their wish would be granted without her interference. Mercury really was that good. It just meant that she couldn’t tell where they were either. For once, her magic was blocking her from knowing the kids’ location.

She took a deep breath again, and paced around the cannon, until she found a piece of parchment pinned to one of the cannon’s levers.

It read: _We’ll have to take a rain check on the family reunion. Turns out using artillery in the middle of the night attracts attention. Don’t worry your short head, we’re fine. See you next year._

Weiss started laughing in exhaustion and crying tears of relief.

\---

It was over. Weiss had delivered presents to every single child in the world, with some time to spare. While the sun was beginning to rise, Weiss was able to return to her home in Lastion with well over three hours before her magic ran out for the year.

The ride home was quiet.

When she entered her home, just as a new dawn came, she sighed. Her apartment, if it could be called that, was empty and cold. She had stayed at her office for nearly two days straight before Christmas, and before that she lived an austere life.

She laid down on her mattress and slept. By the time she was awake again, it was noon, the sun at its zenith. Off in the distance, she could hear carolers and laughter around the town square. While the rest of the world had turned Christmas into a more subdued and personal affair, or even forgotten it, Lastion was the last place with carolers and Christmas trees.

Weiss took a deep breath and frowned. Her powers were still active, just barely. She looked around and saw that every single person in Lastion already had their wishes fulfilled for the year, all except one.

One more gift was needed. And it wasn’t going to be a present this time. Weiss frowned. Why didn’t it show up until after Weiss woke up?

There was a knock on her door, and she knew who it was. The last person in the world waiting for their gift.

Hamson Glint, her young secretary.

Weiss walked to her door and opened it. In front was a young man of twenty, wearing a red scarf over a gray sweater and pants, with mittens included. He smiled at her, and awkwardly started speaking, “Ummm. Miss… Boss, I uh…”

What he wanted for Christmas was very simple: for Weiss to attend Christmas dinner with his family.

“Alright, kid. I’ll be there. What time?” she gave a smile. He asked this every year, for the past five years now.

“Seven o’clock!” he hiccuped out.

“I’ll be there at six to help out,” Weiss smiled, “But of course, we have the whole day to celebrate, don’t we?”

“Yeah, I was uh, going to join the carolers, then join the yearly snowball fight.”

“Well, I suppose this would be a good year to join then,” Weiss grabbed him by the arm, “Lead the way, squirt.”

Hamson laughed, “Will do, boss. Let me tell ya, everyone’s gonna be so excited to see you out and about for once. We really missed you, you know?”

“Yeah,” Weiss said, “I missed you guys too.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a ride. I'm not entirely sure I can top this for next year, and continuing with Weiss Christmas is just a bit moot now. I'll have to figure something out.
> 
> Thank you all for reading, and have a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!


End file.
